Eighth Wonder Of The World – Thirteen Storey Building In Shanghai Topples Over

call HART crazy .. but

A nearly finished 13-storey building toppled over June 27, 2009 – almost intact – killing one worker … Here’s what happened:

(1) An underground garage was being dug on the south side, to a depth of 4.6 meters

(2) The excavated dirt was being piled up on the north side, to a height of 10 meters

(3) The building experienced uneven lateral pressure from south and north

(4) This resulted in a lateral pressure of 3,000 tons, which was greater than what the pilings could tolerate

Building toppled over in the southerly direction

First, the apartment building was constructed

Then the plan called for an underground garage to be dug out. The excavated soil was piled up on the other side of the building

Heavy rains resulted in water seeping into the ground

The building began to shift and the hollow concrete pilings were snapped due to the uneven lateral pressures. The building began to tilt

And thus was born the eighth wonder of the world – highlighting the dangers of shoddy building in fast-urbanising China

Source: FWD’ed to me in my Email with
Subject: Made In China
Caption: I Wonder If They Carry Liability And Or Builders’ Risk Insurance In China?

Tagged as: shanghai, wonder